An Introduction to IMS: Your Complete Guide to IBMs Information Management System

IMS uses two methods to edit and format messages to and from terminals: Message Format Service (MFS) and basic edit routines. IMS also provides exit routines to edit:

• Input and output from a terminal

• Transaction codes

• Input message fields

• Input message segments

• Message switching

This chapter presents an overview of MFS, introduces MFS control blocks for message formatting, summarizes the responsibilities of the MFS administrator, and presents an overview of the IMS basic edit function.

Related Reading:

• For more information about the exit routines that are delivered with IMS, see IMS Version 9: Customization Guide.

• For more information about MFS and the basic edit function, see IMS Version 9: Administration Guide: Transaction Manager.

In This Chapter:

• "Message Format Service" on page 298

• "Basic Edit Function" on page 308